Yet our nation clearly misses the boat on this topic. Our water’s polluted partly because of the chemicals we use on our body when we shower, get out of the shower, and the rest of the day. Our air and food are polluted, and we pollute our minds with a constant stream of negativity.

For Downeaster’s, their first word may be “wreath” or perhaps “tips.” “Downeaster” denotes those who come from the 2 southeastern counties along our coastline of Maine, Washington and Hancock counties. Wreath-making is often a family event, and I’d guess balsam sap may very well run through their veins…

I spent almost 2 months making wreaths and like many Mainers, can now spot the difference between a bad or “Canadian wreath,” and one made by an experienced maker.

Stay off social media or at least reduce it to every 3-4 days. Turn off your phone notifications, too. Stop distractions whenever and wherever possible. The world won’t end if your presence isn’t known every hour or two. Quite frankly, you aren’t missing anything except drama. We all know how easy it is to harp on something you saw 3 days ago, letting our Ego get the best of a useless situation. I sometimes don’t answer a personal text or email for 1-2 weeks—my friends are aware this is normal and they’re afforded the same freedom from having to respond to me immediately.

Whether you consider IPDE as a driving lesson, a martial arts defense move, or futuristic view is irrelevant. What’s important is to look for opportunities, predict where and how they may occur, decide how you’ll react in each version of your future reality, and then actually take that leap.

“No one likes a reformed _____.” This is one of my go-to statements for teaching Compassion. It doesn’t matter what your soapbox is…fill in that blank with reformed “alcoholic, drug addict, sinner, omnivore.” In the spiritual world, it’s called Spiritual Egotism. Anytime we embark on a new lifestyle, we want to share our successes …

Western Maine boasts some of the most amazing mountains and geography I’ve ever seen, comparable to my years spent in Western North Carolina, around the Asheville area. Since it’s been a few months since I’ve sent an update on the landscape of this beautiful state, I thought I’d take this time to share a few pics from our anniversary weekend with you. These are a few photos from the Greenwood/Newry, Maine area – a stretch of glacial magic called Grafton Notch State Park. Note: it’s only 3 of the sections on the outskirts of this beautiful park, so there will be more exploring and pics for you to see at a later date.

It has to be the hardest 2-letter word in the English language. At least that’s my opinion. It’s something a therapist taught me to say over 15 years ago when I was going through my divorce. He had me read “Saying No Without Feeling Guilty,” a book I now recommend frequently, especially to women. …